I am a waterfall - a drawing exercise

I am a waterfall - a drawing exercise

Dr Abe V Rotor

Waterfall in acrylic by the author. 

This serves only as a reference. 

Do not copy. Be original.

How do you see yourself as a waterfall?

This exercise leads us to differentiate reality from imagination. Second, how can we combine reality and idealism to express ourselves?

Here is a drawing exercise suitable to both young and old, in class or workshop.

As a participant draw a waterfall from your own experience and imagination. You have ten minutes to finish it on a one-fourth bond paper using pencil or pen.

A background music is provided while you work. Nature’s sound: water cascading or flowing accompanied by songs of birds and other creatures, and occasional breeze. The theme of a song is Somewhere Over a Rainbow. Other appropriate pieces are The Blue Danube and Flow Gently Sweet Afton.

If you are ready to start the exercise, at this juncture, please pause.

You will come to know the basis of judging your work after you are through. It takes some twenty minutes to finish.

NOTE: Do not read these criteria until you have completed your drawing.

Exchange your paper with your seatmate's. The instructor will now guide you in checking the papers with the criteria below. Use a scale of 1 to 10, starting with 1=Very Poor to 5=Average, and to 10=Outstanding. It's now your discretion to grade the paper given you.

• Height of the waterfall
• Fullness of its water
• Lushness of its watershed
• Abundance of its source, river or lake
• Force and power of the fall
• Strength and firmness of the rock face
• Downstream flow and direction
• Creatures in their natural habitat
• No wasteland, no space left out
• Naturalness and artistic presentation

Add the points obtained from each of the 10 factors. The perfect score is 100. Return paper to the owner.

The second part of the exercise is sharing. What is the significance of this exercise? How does it relate to life?

Relate each criterion with your personal life, your dealings with people, Nature, and the Creator. This takes about half an hour or so.

This exercise leads you to know yourself better - your strength and weakness - and most important - your potentials. ~